1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a package, and more particularly, pertains to a package for protecting tines of a pacing lead for a pulse generator.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It has been a prior art practice to package pacing leads in plastic packages which are suitable for sterilizing such as with gas or autoclaving. The pacing lead in the past has been inserted into the package and has laid flat within the package during transportation, storage, and sterilizing prior to use in an individual. While this has been satisfactory for the prior art pacing leads, with the advent of new tined pacing leads, the tines have displayed amounts of nonconformity after being transported, stored, and sterilized. Such deformation is less than satisfactory from a medical point of view.
Pacing leads with tines have exhibited a certain amount of creep and deformation of the tines resulting in a change of the physical characteristics of the pacing lead.
One prior art practice has now been to insert a ring-tip electrode having outwardly angular extending tines into the hole of a rectangular rubber member. This type of tine protector somewhat accomplished the end result of preventing creep and deformation of the tines but was less than one hundred percent satisfactory.
The present invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art problems by providing a tine protector for protecting the tines spaced about an electrode of a pacing lead.